Living Environment Key Ideas

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INTERMEDIATE SCIENCE LIVING ENVIRONMENT KEY IDEAS AND PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

1. Living things are both similar to and different from each other
  • compare and contrast the parts of plants, animals, and one-celled organisms
  • explain the functioning of the major human organ systems and their interactions

2. Organisms inherit genetic information in a variety of ways
  • describe sexual and asexual mechanisms for passing genetic materials for generation to generation
  • describe simple mechanisms related to the inheritance of some physical traits in offspring

3. Individual organisms and species evolve
  • describe sources of variation in organisms and their structures and relate the variations to survival
  • describe factors responsible for competition within species and the signigficance of that competition

4. The continuity of life is sustained through reproduction & development.
  • observe and describe the variations in reproductive patterns of organisms, including asexual and sexual reproducation
  • explain the role of sperm and egg cells in sexual reproduction
  • observe and describe developmental patterns in selected plants and animals
  • observe and describe cell division at the microscopic level and its macroscopic effects
5. Organisms maintain a dynamic equilibrium
  • compare the way a variety of living specimens carry out basic life functions and maintain dynamic equilibrium
  • desccribe the importance of major nutrients, vitamins, and minerals in maintaining health and promoting growth and explain the need for a constant input of energy for living organisms
6. Plants and animals depend on each other
  • describe the flow of energy and matter through food chains and food webs
  • provide evidnce that green plants make food and explain the significance of this process to other organisms
**7. Human decisions and activities have had an impact on the physical and living environment.**
  • describe how living things, including humans, depend upon the living and nonliving environment for their survival
  • describe the effects of environmental changes on humans and other populations